Finding the Place, by Starfish (ESP Challenge)
Summary: It turned out to be kind of a pain in the ass, as so many cool Ancient toys eventually did.
Rating: No smut
Warnings: Slash
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard
1700 words / 7.8K
ETA: Eeep! Thanks to my wonderful betas misspamela & giddygeek!!
Elizabeth looked at her watch for the third time. "I apologize for keeping you all waiting," she said, "but since Rodney called this meeting, and he's not here yet ..."
John thought longingly of the cafeteria. He'd had to skip breakfast, lunch was looking iffy, Powerbars weren't all they were cracked up to be and where the hell was McKay?
"He's in Corridor A-17," he heard himself say, and everyone turned to look at him. With good cause, because how in God's name had he known that?
"Major?" Elizabeth said.
John shook his head. "I have no idea, it just popped out." He concentrated on McKay again. "Just got out of the transporter. Should be here ... now."
The door opened on cue, and McKay walked in, trailing a string of scientists behind him. "Sorry, sorry," he said breathlessly. "I'm sure none of you will mind when I tell you what I've found, though."
"Is it some sort of ESP-type personnel locator?" John said. "Because if it isn't, I think I've got you beat."
McKay stared. "I -- you -- what?" John just smiled at him.
It turned out to be kind of a pain in the ass, as so many cool Ancient toys eventually did. The locator only worked for and on people with the gene, of course, but the other half of the population wanted to get in on the fun, and John was contemplating taking a jumper to the mainland for no good reason just so he could get some peace. Because if one more person came up to him and said ...
"Excuse me, Major, I know you are busy, but I was wondering if perhaps you could tell me where is Dr. McKay?"
John's teeth started to grind. "Did you try calling him on the comm?" he snapped, half expecting the same negative answer he'd gotten the last four times.
Zelenka blinked. "Yes, of course I did. Several times. He is not answering. He was supposed to meet with me to discuss experiment we are running, and he did not." Zelenka smiled wryly. "It is unlike him to miss opportunity to tell me how 'wildly inaccurate' my theories are."
John sighed. "Sorry," he said. "It's just --" He waved his hand around. Zelenka nodded sympathetically. John concentrated for a second. "He's on Pier 5."
"Really?" Zelenka said. "That is odd. Thank you very much, Major."
"Don't mention it," John said. "You know," he added, "I think I'll help you find him, so I can explain to him how vital it is for someone of his importance to keep his damn comm on."
They set off for Pier 5. As they stepped out of the transporter they were almost run down by McKay and some guy John vaguely recognized. McKay looked flustered.
"Ah, Major. Doctor," he said. "Yes. Our meeting. Terribly sorry; I was delayed with, er, Saunders here. Shall we?"
"Hang on a second," John said. "Why didn't you answer your comm?"
"My, um," McKay said, putting his hand to his earpiece and adjusting it. "It must have gotten dislodged. I don't -- we really need to go, Major."
"Yeah, okay," John said slowly. Something was up, something was off, something was definitely --
"See you later, Rod," Saunders drawled. McKay blushed.
Rod?
"Yes, yes, certainly," McKay stammered. "Later. Yes." He grabbed Zelenka's arm and pulled him off down the corridor without a backward look.
Well, that was weird.
The cafeteria was only about half-full when John finally made time to eat dinner. He stood for a second with his tray, looking around for someone interesting to sit with, and spotted McKay alone at a table in the corner. He headed over, but before he'd taken three steps he saw someone in chef's whites sit in the seat opposite McKay. Saunders.
And then things got interesting. John had a great view of McKay's back, and thus could see how his shoulders tensed up when he looked up to see who had joined him. His posture just about screamed "imminent threat". Then McKay turned around in his seat, and yes, that was relief on his face when he spotted John.
"Major!" McKay shouted. "There you are -- I didn't think you were going to make it." He pulled out the chair next to him and gestured at it almost frantically.
"Yeah," John said slowly, trying to play along with whatever McKay was doing. "You know how it is." He sat down with his tray and nodded across the table. "Saunders," he said.
"How's it going, eh?" said Saunders, barely glancing at him before returning his attention to McKay. "What about it, Rod? Sound like fun?"
"Ah," McKay said. "Yes, well, unfortunately I have a previous commitment with, er, Major Sheppard."
Saunders' face fell. "Can't you reschedule? I'm sure the major will understand."
John wasn't sure if he was supposed to understand or not, given the non-existent nature of the commitment. "Well," he said, giving McKay plenty of time to jump in.
"It's just not possible, is it, Major?" McKay said, nudging John with his foot.
John tried to look apologetic. "Sorry. Official team stuff. Very important."
Saunders looked put out. "Okay then," he said, standing up. "I have to get back to work." He looked at McKay. "See you around," he said.
"Sure, okay, bye," McKay said as Saunders walked off toward the kitchen. As soon as he was out of sight, McKay let out a huge gust of air. "Thank you, Major," he said. "I owe you one."
"I'll settle for an explanation," John said, finally taking a bite of his dinner. Some kind of meat; not bad, really. Needed salt.
"Ah," McKay said. "Apparently someone's set up a sort of movie theater, and tonight's feature is the 2003 Stanley Cup finals."
They'd put roasted garlic in the potatoes tonight. Awesome. "I thought you liked hockey," John mumbled around another mouthful.
"I do," McKay said, his tone implying you idiot. "It's the company I was avoiding. He seems to think one semi-drunken hookup means we're dating, for God's sake."
John choked on his carrots.
"You -- he -- dating?" he said when he could talk again.
"Surely you've heard of it?" McKay said testily. "Or did you think no one could possibly appreciate my extensive and innumerable charms?"
"But he's -- you're not -- are you --" John's brain finally shut down his mouth before he said anything terminally stupid. McKay seemed to get the gist anyway.
"Oh," he said quietly. "You didn't -- is that a problem, Major?"
"Um?" John said, still trying to process.
McKay's mouth turned into the thin line that meant he was somewhere between a little bit ticked and extremely pissed-off. "All right then," he said stiffly, gathering up his things. "If you'll excuse me, I have work to finish. As usual."
John watched him leave. He wanted to call him back, but he didn't know what to say, and at this point it seemed like he'd better come up with something really spectacular.
At least he'd be able to track him down easily when the time came.
It took him four failed attempts before he figured out that McKay was probably using the locator to avoid him. He almost gave it up for the night, but he doubted he'd be able to sleep anyway. One more try led him to Pier 5 for the second time that day.
He thought he'd failed again, but his Spidey-Sense (as he'd begun thinking of it) stubbornly insisted that McKay was right in front of him, so he squinted into the shadows a little harder. "McKay?" he said. "Rodney?"
He heard a sigh. "Yes, Major."
John walked toward him carefully in the dark, wishing for a flashlight or a full moon or something. "Is this some new exercise thing you're doing? I've been chasing you around for an hour and a half now." He stopped when he thought he was about two feet away. "Are you okay?" he asked when McKay didn't answer.
"Peachy."
"Uh huh." He waited again, but McKay wasn't talking. "Listen," he said finally, "I'm not -- I didn't mean -- " and yeah, that was real smooth, like he hadn't been rehearsing this in his head for hours now. He took a deep breath and started again. "I'm sorry about earlier. You kind of took me by surprise."
McKay snorted.
"Well, you did," John said defensively.
"Am I supposed to apologize for that?"
That sounded more like Rodney. "No. Just -- can I ask you a question?"
"You mean beside that one?"
"Seriously, the whole anti-dating thing you've got going on -- is that some kind of a rule, or is it more on a case-by-case basis?"
"What? Why?"
John grinned, wishing he could see McKay's face. "Because I hear there's a movie theater now, and I thought maybe you and I could go sometime."
He heard rustling and a click, and then a blinding light shone in his eyes. "Ow," he said, bringing his hand up to block the flashlight beam. "You mind?"
"Sorry, sorry," McKay said. The beam wobbled as he stood up. "Are you -- Major, are you asking me out?"
"Wow, I guess you really are the smartest guy in Atlantis," John said.
"But you don't -- you're not -- are you?"
John's grin felt like it stretched to his ears. He pointed his finger at McKay in triumph. "See? See how surprising that is?"
McKay laughed, sounding relieved, John thought. "Yes, okay, it's quite a shock."
For several moments they just looked at each other, until John couldn't breathe for the silence. "So, what's your answer?" he said hoarsely.
McKay cocked an eyebrow and smirked. "Depends what the movie is." he said, moving closer until they were almost touching. "I mean, if it's a bad movie, I can think of much better things to do." He put his hand on John's shirt, grabbing the lapel and tugging him forward.
"Such as?" John said softly, his mouth only inches away from Rodney's.
"God, you are so thick sometimes," Rodney whispered, and kissed him.
~end~
Rating: No smut
Warnings: Slash
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard
1700 words / 7.8K
ETA: Eeep! Thanks to my wonderful betas misspamela & giddygeek!!
Elizabeth looked at her watch for the third time. "I apologize for keeping you all waiting," she said, "but since Rodney called this meeting, and he's not here yet ..."
John thought longingly of the cafeteria. He'd had to skip breakfast, lunch was looking iffy, Powerbars weren't all they were cracked up to be and where the hell was McKay?
"He's in Corridor A-17," he heard himself say, and everyone turned to look at him. With good cause, because how in God's name had he known that?
"Major?" Elizabeth said.
John shook his head. "I have no idea, it just popped out." He concentrated on McKay again. "Just got out of the transporter. Should be here ... now."
The door opened on cue, and McKay walked in, trailing a string of scientists behind him. "Sorry, sorry," he said breathlessly. "I'm sure none of you will mind when I tell you what I've found, though."
"Is it some sort of ESP-type personnel locator?" John said. "Because if it isn't, I think I've got you beat."
McKay stared. "I -- you -- what?" John just smiled at him.
It turned out to be kind of a pain in the ass, as so many cool Ancient toys eventually did. The locator only worked for and on people with the gene, of course, but the other half of the population wanted to get in on the fun, and John was contemplating taking a jumper to the mainland for no good reason just so he could get some peace. Because if one more person came up to him and said ...
"Excuse me, Major, I know you are busy, but I was wondering if perhaps you could tell me where is Dr. McKay?"
John's teeth started to grind. "Did you try calling him on the comm?" he snapped, half expecting the same negative answer he'd gotten the last four times.
Zelenka blinked. "Yes, of course I did. Several times. He is not answering. He was supposed to meet with me to discuss experiment we are running, and he did not." Zelenka smiled wryly. "It is unlike him to miss opportunity to tell me how 'wildly inaccurate' my theories are."
John sighed. "Sorry," he said. "It's just --" He waved his hand around. Zelenka nodded sympathetically. John concentrated for a second. "He's on Pier 5."
"Really?" Zelenka said. "That is odd. Thank you very much, Major."
"Don't mention it," John said. "You know," he added, "I think I'll help you find him, so I can explain to him how vital it is for someone of his importance to keep his damn comm on."
They set off for Pier 5. As they stepped out of the transporter they were almost run down by McKay and some guy John vaguely recognized. McKay looked flustered.
"Ah, Major. Doctor," he said. "Yes. Our meeting. Terribly sorry; I was delayed with, er, Saunders here. Shall we?"
"Hang on a second," John said. "Why didn't you answer your comm?"
"My, um," McKay said, putting his hand to his earpiece and adjusting it. "It must have gotten dislodged. I don't -- we really need to go, Major."
"Yeah, okay," John said slowly. Something was up, something was off, something was definitely --
"See you later, Rod," Saunders drawled. McKay blushed.
Rod?
"Yes, yes, certainly," McKay stammered. "Later. Yes." He grabbed Zelenka's arm and pulled him off down the corridor without a backward look.
Well, that was weird.
The cafeteria was only about half-full when John finally made time to eat dinner. He stood for a second with his tray, looking around for someone interesting to sit with, and spotted McKay alone at a table in the corner. He headed over, but before he'd taken three steps he saw someone in chef's whites sit in the seat opposite McKay. Saunders.
And then things got interesting. John had a great view of McKay's back, and thus could see how his shoulders tensed up when he looked up to see who had joined him. His posture just about screamed "imminent threat". Then McKay turned around in his seat, and yes, that was relief on his face when he spotted John.
"Major!" McKay shouted. "There you are -- I didn't think you were going to make it." He pulled out the chair next to him and gestured at it almost frantically.
"Yeah," John said slowly, trying to play along with whatever McKay was doing. "You know how it is." He sat down with his tray and nodded across the table. "Saunders," he said.
"How's it going, eh?" said Saunders, barely glancing at him before returning his attention to McKay. "What about it, Rod? Sound like fun?"
"Ah," McKay said. "Yes, well, unfortunately I have a previous commitment with, er, Major Sheppard."
Saunders' face fell. "Can't you reschedule? I'm sure the major will understand."
John wasn't sure if he was supposed to understand or not, given the non-existent nature of the commitment. "Well," he said, giving McKay plenty of time to jump in.
"It's just not possible, is it, Major?" McKay said, nudging John with his foot.
John tried to look apologetic. "Sorry. Official team stuff. Very important."
Saunders looked put out. "Okay then," he said, standing up. "I have to get back to work." He looked at McKay. "See you around," he said.
"Sure, okay, bye," McKay said as Saunders walked off toward the kitchen. As soon as he was out of sight, McKay let out a huge gust of air. "Thank you, Major," he said. "I owe you one."
"I'll settle for an explanation," John said, finally taking a bite of his dinner. Some kind of meat; not bad, really. Needed salt.
"Ah," McKay said. "Apparently someone's set up a sort of movie theater, and tonight's feature is the 2003 Stanley Cup finals."
They'd put roasted garlic in the potatoes tonight. Awesome. "I thought you liked hockey," John mumbled around another mouthful.
"I do," McKay said, his tone implying you idiot. "It's the company I was avoiding. He seems to think one semi-drunken hookup means we're dating, for God's sake."
John choked on his carrots.
"You -- he -- dating?" he said when he could talk again.
"Surely you've heard of it?" McKay said testily. "Or did you think no one could possibly appreciate my extensive and innumerable charms?"
"But he's -- you're not -- are you --" John's brain finally shut down his mouth before he said anything terminally stupid. McKay seemed to get the gist anyway.
"Oh," he said quietly. "You didn't -- is that a problem, Major?"
"Um?" John said, still trying to process.
McKay's mouth turned into the thin line that meant he was somewhere between a little bit ticked and extremely pissed-off. "All right then," he said stiffly, gathering up his things. "If you'll excuse me, I have work to finish. As usual."
John watched him leave. He wanted to call him back, but he didn't know what to say, and at this point it seemed like he'd better come up with something really spectacular.
At least he'd be able to track him down easily when the time came.
It took him four failed attempts before he figured out that McKay was probably using the locator to avoid him. He almost gave it up for the night, but he doubted he'd be able to sleep anyway. One more try led him to Pier 5 for the second time that day.
He thought he'd failed again, but his Spidey-Sense (as he'd begun thinking of it) stubbornly insisted that McKay was right in front of him, so he squinted into the shadows a little harder. "McKay?" he said. "Rodney?"
He heard a sigh. "Yes, Major."
John walked toward him carefully in the dark, wishing for a flashlight or a full moon or something. "Is this some new exercise thing you're doing? I've been chasing you around for an hour and a half now." He stopped when he thought he was about two feet away. "Are you okay?" he asked when McKay didn't answer.
"Peachy."
"Uh huh." He waited again, but McKay wasn't talking. "Listen," he said finally, "I'm not -- I didn't mean -- " and yeah, that was real smooth, like he hadn't been rehearsing this in his head for hours now. He took a deep breath and started again. "I'm sorry about earlier. You kind of took me by surprise."
McKay snorted.
"Well, you did," John said defensively.
"Am I supposed to apologize for that?"
That sounded more like Rodney. "No. Just -- can I ask you a question?"
"You mean beside that one?"
"Seriously, the whole anti-dating thing you've got going on -- is that some kind of a rule, or is it more on a case-by-case basis?"
"What? Why?"
John grinned, wishing he could see McKay's face. "Because I hear there's a movie theater now, and I thought maybe you and I could go sometime."
He heard rustling and a click, and then a blinding light shone in his eyes. "Ow," he said, bringing his hand up to block the flashlight beam. "You mind?"
"Sorry, sorry," McKay said. The beam wobbled as he stood up. "Are you -- Major, are you asking me out?"
"Wow, I guess you really are the smartest guy in Atlantis," John said.
"But you don't -- you're not -- are you?"
John's grin felt like it stretched to his ears. He pointed his finger at McKay in triumph. "See? See how surprising that is?"
McKay laughed, sounding relieved, John thought. "Yes, okay, it's quite a shock."
For several moments they just looked at each other, until John couldn't breathe for the silence. "So, what's your answer?" he said hoarsely.
McKay cocked an eyebrow and smirked. "Depends what the movie is." he said, moving closer until they were almost touching. "I mean, if it's a bad movie, I can think of much better things to do." He put his hand on John's shirt, grabbing the lapel and tugging him forward.
"Such as?" John said softly, his mouth only inches away from Rodney's.
"God, you are so thick sometimes," Rodney whispered, and kissed him.
~end~